Our Story

Joey's Story

My son was almost two and a half when he was diagnosed with Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS). CAS is a speech disorder in which the brain has difficulty coordinating oral movements to create intentional sounds. I knew he needed immediate ways to functionally communicate because learning verbal communication was likely to be a lifelong challenge.

I also knew I wanted a communication system that would fit his needs and our life. Picture-based communication was just what we needed, but I also wanted a system that would fit organically into our lives.

So I built one!

Learn more about CAS

How did I design a system for Joey?

I knew the best system for my son would be one that I could
customize. I wanted the icons to be clear, concise, attractive, and, most
importantly, look like him! So I pulled everything I had learned from 10 years
working with adults with disabilities, 7 years working in behavior
modification and learning, and a lifelong love of graphic design to create
a system I knew would be easy to
use and flexible enough to grow with.

How did Joey learn how to use the system?

  • Step 1: Introduce

    We started by making three simple boards to hang strategically around the house, each with only a few highly desired items. The first board was placed in the kitchen with a few favorite snacks, the second was placed in the bathroom, with three hygiene needs, and the last was placed in the living room with favorite activities.

  • Step 2: Group

    Next, when Joey was used to interacting with the icons and using them to communicate, we pulled all the boards to one central location and bound them together to make his first book.

  • Step 3: Grow

    As his vocabulary needs grew, so did his book. We added icons and pages as the need arose. We tailored his book based on recommendations from his speech and language pathologist (SLP) and our needs at home. His book continues to evolve as his verbal speech progresses!

Where is Joey now?

Just over a year after receiving his diagnosis, Joey is thriving at preschool and at home! It's been a tumultuous road, but he uses a combination of his AAC book, ASL signs, and a growing verbal vocabulary to communicate. He loves to share his thoughts and make lots of requests. He especially loves to repeat everything mama says! He even learned to verbalize "why?", and now we have a new communication challenge to navigate!

We had to share!

When I watched Joey's communication develop, I knew I had to find a way to share the communication system that had supported him. While going through this process, many professionals didn't seem to hear me when I said I did not want to give my young son a tablet device–I wanted more options to find a communication system that would better fit my son and our family. So, together with the women I trust the most, we set out to build Growing Mighty Learners and offer non-tech AAC options to families and learners.

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